Each golfer is unique. Because of the infinite physical and mental variations of humanity, each golfer has his own unique individual physiology and individual psychology. These unique individual physiologies and individual psychologies produce a correspondingly unique individual golf swing. Unfortunately, the sale of golf clubs is not aimed at this uniqueness of every golfer's swing.
At this time, there are three general ways in which golf clubs are manufactured, marketed, and sold. A first group of manufacturers of golf clubs sell their clubs in the finished and assembled state. Marketing, and not the purchasing individual, has much to do with the sale and use of such golf clubs. A second group assembles golf clubs from their individual components including the grip, shaft, and club head components. Within the constraints of the manufactured components, this second group achieves a limited customizing of golf clubs. A third group designs clubs to match the “physics” of a golf club striking a golf ball. Unfortunately, golf and physics are not the same. Analysis of these generic manufacture, marketing, and sale of golf clubs to the average golfer establishes the fallacious theoretical foundation of these practices.
Regarding the sale of the golf clubs in the finished and assembled state, a short example of how such clubs are designed will suffice. Typically, a world famous professional golf athlete usually prefers a “professional's favorite club.” This “professional's favorite club” is usually a customized golf club, tailor made to the professional and the product of numerous iterations to match the required needs of the professional golf athlete. It is a common practice to duplicate such clubs. Thereafter, by attaching the name of the professional golf athlete to the finished and assembled duplicate of his golf club, substantial sales are generated.
This practice defies logic and common sense. The professional golf athlete is usually a physically fit, mentally unique, full-time professional golfer. To compare this professional golf athlete to the randomly selected amateur who is of random build, typically unfit, mentally unsure, and a part-time opportunistic golfer is not logical. To further assume that golf clubs sold in the finished and assembled state can be transferred without consequence from the professional golf athlete to the randomly selected amateur defies logic.
Unfortunately, golf clubs sold in the finished and assembled state can never match the required weighting, appearance, feel, and performance which can be individually tailored to each golfer. This sale of clubs in their finished and assembled state assumes that the weighting, appearance, feel, and performance will be the same for the unique professional golfer and the randomly selected amateur. The mere statement of this proposition establishes its fallacious logic.
A second group of golf club manufacturers can be described as the component manufacturers group. They manufacture and or sell golf club components singularly. These components include the grip, the shaft, and the club head. Final assembly of the grip, shaft, and club head components is left to a group of golf club assemblers, who combine these golf club components. More often than not, the combination includes copies or imitations of the professional's favorite club at reduced prices. Thus, although the possibility of some individual customization of golf clubs is present, the opportunity is frequently forfeited in favor of the current “professional's favorite club” fad. Further, and once these golf clubs are assembled, club change seldom occurs. The purchasing golfer is constrained to the assembled golf club unit.
A third group of golf club manufacturers can be described as the vendors of “engineered” golf clubs. Characteristic of these clubs are unique grips, carbon fiber shafts, and engineered impact heads. Taking the case of the engineered impact heads, in one engineered golf club design, the mass of the golf club head is concentrated at the periphery of the club head while the center of the club is hollowed to reduce the centrally located mass of the club. This design takes into account the well-known engineering principle of “rotational moment of inertia.” With such a club head, if the golf ball is hit off center, the tendency of the club to correspondingly drive the ball off center is reduced.
Unfortunately, for this “engineered” design, it is frequently forgotten that golf is a physical game governed by arbitrary rules which are not ergonomically matched to the arbitrary and random physiological and psychological state of the average human.
In golf, the player must place his feet on one side of the ball and swing a golf club eccentrically to his body on the other side of his feet to contact the ball on a random other than-level green. The golf ball is aimed at a hole having non uniform placement on a green with random and changing elevations with placed holes that are constantly changed. Further, the golf club (here are known as a “putter”) is required to be asymmetric with respect to the human body. According to the rules of golf, the putter head at its bottom green contacting surface must be inclined with respect to the shaft at least 10 degrees. The putter at its face can be inclined upwardly up to 10 degrees away from the green. The shaft can have a 20 degree variation with respect to the putter head within the plane of swing of the putter. Further, attachment of the shaft to the putter head can vary within wide limits so long as the shaft fastens anywhere to the putter head. Ergonomically, considering the human body and the laws of physics, golf has arbitrary, random, and other than optimal characteristics which cannot be solved by “engineered” designs.
Compounding the way in which golf clubs are manufactured, marketed and sold is the propensity of the average golfer to change. During youth, strength, coordination and mental attitude rapidly and (usually) favorably change. At maturity, strength, coordination and mental attitude usually have some predictability but are nevertheless dynamic. Finally, with age, strength, coordination, and mental attitude again undergo (usually) unfavorable change. Yet in this latter “with age” case, golf is more frequently played by the dedicated player.
In this environment, the (average) golfer is encouraged to maintain a precisely repeatable swing and stroke for maximum accuracy and predictability of his game. The golf club is an integral part of the precisely repeatable swing and stroke. Unfortunately, and as set forth above, there has been no attempt to individually tailor golf clubs to the average golfer within the overall constraints set forth above.